Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp
by animetomboy2
Summary: An Utena/Aladdin crossover story. Utena has come into possession of an ancient lamp said to hold a magical genie that will grant her three wishes. What will her three wishes be? Will they come true or will there be a terrible twist of fate? Wanna find out? Sound interesting to you? Then read the story and you will know! Check it out, please. :D
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Utena or Aladdin.

 **Author's Note:** This was an idea that came to me recently, when I was watching Aladdin with my girlfriend. I thought it might be cute, she thought it was cute too, and that it made a lot of sense, when you think about it, so I'm making it into a story. So enjoy everyone.

Until I can get another chapter up in my other story, which might be a small while again (sorry), enjoy this one. Hopefully it will hold you guys over a little. ^^'

—

 **Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp**

 **Chapter 1** **: The Beginning**

"And this is for you Utena!" Wakaba excitedly exclaimed as she finished handing out presents to a few of us standing around her in the hallway.

"Hm? Oh thanks Wakaba…" I took it, and trailed, looking at it, trying to make out what it was. Or rather, what it appeared to be. "This thing looks pretty cool, but… what is it?" I asked, handling it gently in my hands.

"What? You mean you haven't seen these things around before?" She asked, crossing her arms in huffy sort of unbelievable way. As if I had been living under a rock all this time or something.

"Well.. no, I can't say I'm that familiar with it. Why don't you just tell me?" I smiled her way.

"Well, alright." She uncrossed her arms, and took a position right next to me. "It's supposed to be some kind of magic lamp. They have a bunch of these replicas in the marketplaces and gift shops over in India. I thought of you when I saw it, and I'm not entirely sure why, but I just knew you had to have it! So I picked it up for you. Do you like it?" She hyperactively hugged to my arm, and smooched her face up against my own, our cheeks pressing together, distorting our speech just a bit.

"Yeah of course I like it. I just wish I knew what to do with it. Maybe I'll put it up in my room somewhere, it'll make for a nice decoration. Or.. maybe a pencil holder or something." I laughed comically, and then my hands dropped, holding it by its handle.

"Great, I'm so happy!" She hugged even tighter. I groaned a bit, from the tight grip. And within the next moment, she let go, realizing she was squeezing a little too hard, and then instantly jumped onto my back like she normally did, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. There was a pause before she started to speak again, both of us, watching from the window, the students conversing and doing their activities down below. By now, the small crowd of friends that she had gifts for had dispersed to play with their new items.

Feeling the weight of Wakaba finally on my back, I leaned on the window, and set the lamp on the sill, as if not to fall over. I rested my chin in my hand and closed my eyes as the breeze blew by me, and throw my hair.

"So what is it supposed to do exactly? I mean… why is it so popular?" I asked, keeping my eyes closed.

"Well legend has it that a genie is contained in that lamp. If you rub it gently, it will break the seal and the genie will be set free. They will grant you three wishes, before you do not have ownership of the lamp anymore, and the genie goes back into it for the next person to rub and their next sentence of servitude to carry out. At least that's what the guy at the market told me when I was there. I don't know if it's true or not." She waved her hands a little as she told the story, which set her off balance, my legs shook just a bit as she shifted around, but I wouldn't fall.

"Ah I see. A genie." Was all I said next.

"Yep. I thought you could use it to wish for something pretty neat. Like acing your tests without studying, or maybe for something good to happen to you, or I don't know, something really cool, I guess. Just use your three wishes wisely, Utena." Wakaba tapped my head to let me know she was serious about all this. I chuckled a bit, and opened my eyes, rolling them.

"Sure, I'll make sure to do that. Come on Wakaba, you don't actually think those legends and stories about genies are true, do you? They're just some fairytale that they made up to give this thing a story. I'd say it's a real nice novelty pen holder, or paperweight. So it's still useful." I smiled, as to not show my seriousness; This was just a casual conversation.

"Well you can believe what you want to believe Utena! I'm going to believe them!" She exclaimed in her normally weird way.

"Alright." I agreed.

—

 _ **Later that day…**_

"I wonder if the thing Wakaba was telling me about is really true or not." I thought as I played around with the lamp she had given to me.

' _It was really thoughtful of her to get this for me. I'll have to remember to thank her later… I don't think I thanked her before… or did I?'_

I continued to stare at it endlessly, fiddling around with it, getting lost in my thoughts. I was laying on the grasslands sloped in front of the school, enjoying the breeze and the sun on my skin. Suddenly, there was a voice, a male voice that rang through the air, coming from behind me, it seemed.

"Quite an item you've got there." He said, as she walked over carefully to where I was laying and sat down, the wind blowing through his long locks as well. I sat up just a bit and looked over at him, then I laid back down. And in that moment of silence that passed, I thought of what to say. I placed the lamp back down at my side, and began to look at my ring, playing with its affects under the different angles of sunlight hitting it.

"What do you want?" I asked calmly.

"Just to talk." He answered back directly, not taking his eyes off me.

"About what?" I threw back at him.

"Well, I noticed you were all alone over here. And since you were, I thought you must be lonely, so I came over to keep you some company. After all, a girl of your age and beauty should never be by herself." He smirked and looked forward, ahead, down the sloped hill of grass in front of him to the flat trail beneath, with some students still walking along it.

It was after school, and the sun was beginning to lose its height in the sky, which made the scenery look a little faded in color.

"Oh shut up." I sighed and sat up, placing both my hands behind me for balance. I sighed.

"Wherever did you get a genie's lamp in the first place, Miss Tenjou? Such a rare and mysterious item, and how curious that it should fall into your hands." He started.

"Wakaba recently took a trip to India, and a few other places in Asia. It was an educational program of some sort for a few weeks, so while she was there, she made sure to get me something, I guess. She told me that these things have a legend to them, but there's a lot of them in like every marketplace over there. So it's nothing special, still, I think it's rather neat." I looked at it glimmering in the setting sunlight.

"Yes, they are quite amazing." He agreed. Then he continued his thought. "But you know, if I were you, I would be very careful with what you say about those things. They may hold more power than you think." He warned, I looked at him, and he smirked, closing his eyes and stroking his chin, thoughtfully.

"What do you mean? That this weird thing actually has some kind of magic power?" I asked.

"Well, it's certainly possible." He thought, but then opened his eyes to look at me, with a smile. "But, what I meant was that genies are known for twisting people's words. You wish for something you think is straightforward and they end up twisting it around in such a way that makes the wish almost seem evil." He explained. "For example, say you wished for a million bucks. You obviously mean money right?" I nodded, following along. "Well, they could grant you the wish of a million bucks, only in deer. It's the same thing, so you have to watch what you say. And if you disrespect a genie, he will be sure to make your worst nightmares come true." He crossed his arms and nodded, feeling satisfied with his explanation.

"So you're telling me, that all I have to do is rub this stupid old lamp, and a magical genie will pop out and grant me three wishes, any three wishes I want? And that if I don't watch what I say that he will twist my words into something I didn't mean?" I tried recounting the story so far.

"Mhm, that's precisely right. So I'd be careful with that thing you got from your friend." He looked at it, warily.

"Please, Mr. Student Council President, it's just a paperweight or a pen holder or something." I started. "It doesn't have a genie that's going to come out and grant me wishes, it doesn't have a legend to it, and it doesn't have any magic powers, I just wish everyone would stop saying so. I bet so many other people around the world have souvenirs like this, so can we all just..stop making this into a big deal?" I sighed and laid back down, playing with my ring.

"Well alright, I guess I really can't convince you." He shook his head. "Beauty and brains… quite the combination. I must say." He smirked and moved closer.

I rolled my eyes at him as well. Then I stood up and stretched, he followed, only he didn't stretch. He simply watched me, and when I realized he was staring, I stopped and looked directly at him.

"What are you looking at?"

"Just a wonderful girl, with an excellent smile." He moved a little closer again.

I couldn't help but blush a little at the compliment, but I looked away, and as he reached for my hand, I gently slapped it away.

"Look, I don't know what you're after here, Touga.. but…" I slowly started that sentence.

"Then at least let me buy you some dinner, I promise it will be exquisite." He leaned down and tried to get to the side of my face, but my eyes were closed and I wasn't going to open them to look at him. The blush had faded.

"No thank you Touga. As good as that sounds, I don't think I'm really interested in getting dinner with you sometime. There's no one really for me right now.. I'm just after my dreams." I looked down at the grass and caught a fuzzy image of him out of my periphery.

"To be a prince, and that prince is the only one for you, I see." He smirked and stood up again, smelling a flower he seemed to have pulled from his back pocket. I wasn't aware that he even had the flower, or that he was carrying it around. He closed his eyes and cherished the scent of the blood red rose in his hand. Then he held it out to me gently, and I slowly turned my head to look at him and the flower he was offering to me. I blinked in confusion. "For my ambitious girl then, chasing after her dreams."

I blushed again. "I'm not yours, Touga." Though I didn't want to accept the rose, I did anyway, out of kindness. Even though he was a bit of a playboy, I couldn't deny that he was a pretty nice guy on the inside. The truth is, I saw right through his charming facade; The act he put on usually worked on the other girls of this school - The compliments, the roses, the charming smile, and the overly-chivalrous attitude, kissing their hands and bowing to them and everything - It was gross, but give Touga chance and he could be a really good friend with some really good insight.

I wasn't after the guy myself, there was more of a friendship between us than anything else,and over the course of my time here at Ohtori, he would come to talk to me quite often. That's how we became such good friends, even if we didn't seem like it and thew banter back and forth. That just made our friendship stronger, and made conversation more fun.

"Well, I should be going. I have an awful lot of math homework tonight and if I don't start now, I'm never going to get it done." I yawned and stretched once more beginning to head past Touga and towards my dorm.

"Then I bid you farewell, till next we meet Utena." He bowed, just a bit and I rolled my eyes again, heading for my dorm. He turned away swiftly as well, and began walking in the opposite direction, off to wherever he was off to as well.

—

I sighed as I approached my dorm. The room I was staying in was so dirty, filled with cobwebs and spiders; And even though I cleaned up the place a little bit, it still looked like it hadn't been touched yet alone lived in for years. And it was a single, so I was staying by myself - but it was a dorm, and I was in no position to pass up a place to stay after all.

So I returned what place I came to know as home as long as I was attending Ohtori Academy. The long walk along the path to my dorm sometimes wasn't worth it, I thought, but I always ended up making it anyway. Besides, I guess it was good exercise.

Placing my hand on the dusty handle, I gently turned it and opened the door, turning the lights on, which flickered for a moment, but then remained on. They shined on the dust-ridden place as I walked in and slopped my bag down on the floor by the table. I took my shoes off by my bed and proceeded into the kitchen area to get something to drink. A simple water bottle that was somewhat cold from the fridge was my drink of choice. I opened it, as the fridge closed and headed back over to the table with my bag next to it. I placed the water bottle on the table and tediously began to unpack my things, all my books, then tiredly placing the ones I needed in front of me on the table.

I placed the lamp in the center of the table I was working off of, and then picked up a pencil and pressed it to the page of the workbook. As I read the problems, and worked on them, my eyes began to droop, and my vision began to blur. I found my head falling, and myself going in and out of consciousness a few times. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore and my head almost floated down to the table, resting on it sideways, with my pencil still in my hands, my eyes closed, I fell asleep.

—

 _ **A couple hours later…**_

I felt some movement by my hair, almost tugging on a few strands of it, and heard some munching and chewing sounds a little ways by my ear. Hearing that and feeling that, I began to stir, and gently wake up, my eyes opening slowly. As I was starting to wake up, I registered those feelings, and my eyes opened wide in a little bit of fear.

I jumped up.

"Ah!" I stumbled back and hit my back on the bed lightly. "Ow.." I mumbled, looking at what was causing those feelings, the thing on the table. It froze and went rigid, staring at me as well with half a cookie in its mouth.

It seemed a little afraid as well.

It looked to be some kind of… rat.

Then it slowly turned around, and finished eating the cookie, stuffing it in its mouth, and cheeks bursting with food, it turned back around to face me.

' _Great there's rats in my dorm now…'_

I thought to myself, as it tried to swallow it all at once, and then began to choke. His face turned blue as the food got lodged in his throat and he fell over. I quickly got up and ran to get a spoon, placing some water on it, and holding it to his mouth, helping him to stand up again so he could drink it.

He sipped it down and the food went down alright, his color returning to normal.

He smiled, his stomach poking out after the big cookie he just ate.

"I hope you're alright little guy. I don't know how you got in here, but I don't need you dying." I smiled nervously, placing the spoon down on the table next to the bottle of water.

"Chu." It made a positive noise, with a smile.

"I guess that means you're fine now." I smiled.

"Chu chu." He nodded.

' _I'm talking to a rat…'_ I sighed. Really? I was talking to animals now? How weird was this?

The rat then walked over and grabbed one of my fingers, using both of his tiny hands to shake it. I smiled and shook back.

"Well hello there." I smiled at him. "What's your name?"

"Chu chu." He spoke again.

"I guess your name is Chu chu, then." He nodded.

"Well nice to meet you Chu chu, my name is Utena." I smiled, again. What a friendly little guy. He shook my finger again excitedly, before letting it go and catching sight of a molded piece of bread on the floor. Albeit it was a small crumb, but it was still big enough to have visible mold on it. His eyes lit up and he rushed over to it, picking it up and opening his mouth.

"Ah I wouldn't eat that if I were you. It'll make you sick, Chu chu." I watched him warily. Slowly, he put the small piece of bread back down on the floor and stepped away from it.

"Boy, you sure do like food don't you?" He nodded and climbed back onto the table with me. "Well, then I guess I'm going to have to get some more after school tomorrow. If you're going to be living with me that is. How would you like to be friends and stay here with me, hm? We could keep each other company." I smiled again.

"Chu.. chu chu!" He agreed happily.

"Alright." The atmosphere came to an exciting, happy one, from the dark and boring one it was before. But, in the middle of the moment between Chu chu and I, the light above me flickered a little again and a sudden realization hit me.

"Oh right! My math homework!" I picked up my pencil and began at it again, while Chu chu went scouring for more food.

—

 **Author's Note:** I know not too exciting, but I hope you think it's definitely interesting and cute as it's supposed to be. :D

Stick around, there's more to come!


	2. Chapter 2: For Friendship, Perhaps

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Utena or Aladdin, but both are pretty awesome.

 **Author's Note:** Hello, hello again people. I will begin working on my other story straight away - I do still have some things going on in my life, as mentioned, that I need to work out and figure out, nothing is ever easy, so I thank you for your patience and kindness, and ask that you continue to bear with me. I promise I'll try my best to release chapters as quickly as possible. I have big plans, and it's bound to be entertaining, I promise.

But, first, let's get another chapter to this short little story I have going on - so without further ado, here's the next piece to the story I just published recently.

I hope you all enjoy!

—

 **Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp**

 **Chapter 2** **: For Friendship, Perhaps**

 _ **The next day…**_

I yawned as I made my way into school. I felt like I had been up all night completing that damned math homework, even though at some point I must have fallen asleep. My bag was lazily draped over my shoulder and I slid my feet as I walked. I hope the teacher was at least going to check that everyone did the homework this time around.

"Utena! Utena! Utena, my love!" Wakaba rushed towards me with that same familiar catchphrase of hers, as she leaped into the air and landed on my back, wrapping her arms enthusiastically around my neck, with this huge, hyperactive smile on her face. I couldn't deny; Sometimes I wish I could be as cheery as her, and then again, sometimes not.

I yawned and smiled tiredly. "You know… you're going to start to give people the wrong idea about us if you keep saying that." I remarked in a joking way.

"I don't care! Let them think what they want, you're my best friend, my true love Utena! There's no one better for me than you!" She giggled with delight and hugged even tighter. I swear, for someone so small as she, she did have a good, rather, lethal, grip.

Just then, a man with green hair, Vice President of the Student Council, walked by us, on his way into school as well. Wakaba seemed to loosen her grip, let go completely, and get off of me, almost jumping in front of me and saying…

"Uh.. good morning, Saionji-sama…" She blushed a little as she looked at him. Suddenly, he stopped, and for a moment, his back was still turned towards her, but then his head turned to the side so his eye could be seen, and just barely, a smirk upon his mouth. He seemed perhaps a bit, tense… no, angry was the better word.

"And just who are you?" He asked bluntly, impolitely.

"Oh, yes. T-that's right… you probably don't remember me… my name is Wakaba… Shinohara?" She kicked her foot in the dirt some, shyly, as she looked down and folded her hands.

"Hm? I can't say I remember a Wakaba Shinohara.." He thought for a moment, readjusting his head forward and looking down at the ground, so now all we could see of him was his back. A few moments passed again, and as Wakaba began to speak, he cut her off.

"That's okay.." She smiled, and was just getting to finish her sentence and wish him a good day to be about her way when..

"Oh yes, you." He started, which made her stop in her tracks. Her eyes were wide with delight at the fact that he remembered her. I watched the scene, with a small smile on my face as well, wondering where this might be going. "I remember you - Wakaba Shinohara… the person who sent me that completely idiotic.. I mean, sweet - love letter." He smirked, and even though I couldn't see his stupid face, I could tell he was.

Wakaba just stood there in shock. Her smile faded, and her face almost drooped. If one were quiet enough I swear you could hear the sounds of Wakaba's heart breaking, the little cracks starting to spread. Her knees wobbled for a second before she could regain balance and she seemed frozen. That was mean, that was going too far, that was just…

"Hey!" I spoke up on my friend's behalf, as some of the tears that were welling in her eyes began to fall down her face silently. A few of them hit the dirt beneath her feet, as she then turned around and began to run away. "Wait… Wakaba…" I tried to stop her, but it was to no avail. It was then that he turned around, when he realized that someone was addressing him directly. "That was completely uncalled for!" I looked at him intensely, my blue, now meeting his violet.

"What's uncalled for is writing down all those sentiments to me. I receive a lot of love letters each day, but they don't matter to me. No, in fact, none of these grotesque girls at this school catch my attention, they're much too stupid for anyone to like them anyway." He spoke in a matter of fact, nonchalant way. My fists balled and I continued to glare at him. Who did this guy think he was, some kind of prize himself?

"And besides, all those love letters I receive, are my letters, my business, and I can do what I choose with them. I can throw them away, I can burn them, tear them to pieces, and share my opinions on them too. I was just being honest with her." He continued.

There was a devilish look in his eyes; There was something really messed up about this guy, though I couldn't place it just yet.

"If you didn't feel the same, you could have just said so, instead of calling it idiotic on purpose!" I yelled. "Wakaba really likes you, and you just broke her heart, and you don't even care." I remarked.

"Like I said.." He was almost, sort of, laughing. "I was just being honest with her." Then his face stopped the comical expression it was portraying and faded into that of a more serious one. "So I suggest you stop bugging me about it."

"Fine. Since words won't do anything and you can't keep your opinions to yourself, let's settle this in a way you can understand." I raised my hand and pointed at him, the hand with the ring on it. "I challenge you, Saionji. I challenge you to a duel after school. I'm going to take back my friend's honor." I made sure he knew the resolve in my eyes, and if Wakaba were secretly listening right now, I hope she'd feel a little better that I was willing to get her honor back from this jerk.

"You can't be serious. You and me, duel? Who do you think you are little-…" He shook his head, and only after he stopped and refocused on me, this time a little more closely, could he see the ring, glimmering in the sunlight, which stopped him; And then he smirked, and closed his eyes, crossing his arms. "I see.. you own a rose crest ring. - In that case, very well. You and I will meet in the dueling arena forest after school for this duel. I look forward to your challenge." He opened his eyes again and walked away with that same, dark, grimy, smirk.

' _Just wait Wakaba… I'll make sure he gets what he deserves…'_

I thought as I watched him walk away, and then proceeded to walk to my own class to start the day.

—

 _ **A few hours later… In the Rose Garden…**_

' _I know I said this was just supposed to be a penholder, but… ever since that talk with Touga yesterday I can't help but wonder if what he said was true. I mean… if this thing is really said to hold magical powers…'_

I started to think, but then shook my head.

' _No… it can't be. Can it?'_

I continued, looking at the thing, which was in my hands. I kept looking at it, side to side, from above and below. I looked at the point, where it seemed there was a small hole for liquid to be poured out, almost like a teapot. And then again at the handle, which now had some of my fingerprints on it. It was a little dusty.

' _Well I suppose there could be a lot of dirt and sand over there. Which would explain why it's kinda dusty. But still… it seems so simple - Rub the lamp and a genie will grant you three wishes. Any three wishes you want…'_

I continued to think, sitting on the floor to the Rose Garden. It was nice, no one was in here, and it was quiet during the day. There were lots of flowers around here, and it always smelled of roses, which reminded me of the past, and how I obtained the ring that I cherish so closely today. Speaking of that ring, I gently set the lamp down on the ground in between my legs which were bent and open, out to the sides, and raised my hand with the ring on it, to look at it again.

' _I wonder if the genie can bring the prince to me who gave me this ring. Even though I remember what he told me, I still can't remember his face…'_

The thoughts continued, as I turned my hand.

' _No wait… I wonder if this magical genie can make me into a prince. Yeah! That's it. I can't wish to be a prince, and then I can go about saving princesses and people in trouble, just like my prince did for me!'_

A smile grew on my face as I thought this to myself.

' _And then if I become a prince, I can fight for what I believe in, I can protect those I care for.'_

I nodded, as my resolve grew, and then I placed my hand down, with a soft smile.

' _Shoot!'_

My thoughts screamed as I packed the lamp into my bag hurriedly, and stood up in even more of a hurry.

"I have to meet Saionji to settle the score with him soon. I'd better get going, and practice some of my sword skills. Now… to grab a kendo stick.." I immediately headed for the kendo practice room to grab one of the practice blades they had available.

—

 _ **After school… in the dueling arena forest…**_

I approached some kind of wall.

"Well, this is the place." I remarked, kendo stick in hand. Suddenly, I spotted a handle of some sort, and decided to try and pull it open, but it turned out to be stuck, locked.

"Figures, you need some kind of special key to get inside." I left my hand where it was on the handle, looking up for another way in; But suddenly…

There was a small splash of cold water upon my ring, and I drew back my hand from the shock of the cold feeling. But as soon as the droplet hit my ring, waters came pouring out of the side fountains, and I stood back, watching this happen. The wall in front of me, was really the door all along, and it separated and moved into its appropriate decorative structures. And then, in front of me, the pathway cleared and there was a very visible doorway for me to enter through.

"Well, I'd say this works out perfectly." I smirked and with a determined look in my eyes, I began to climb the stairs up towards the top of the dueling arena forest.

After a small while, I'd managed to make it up to the flat platform, the top of the arena, which is where we were to be dueling. Saionji was already there as I made my entrance and stopped, facing opposite and a few feet away from him. He was wearing his usual smirk, and had some kind of sheath attached at his belt.

"I see you've made it." He remarked smugly. I looked around, the arena was very vast, but, as vast as it was, there was one part that really caught my eye, and made me wonder.

As I looked up, there was nighttime sky, full of stars and a moon; And though it was still daytime, and the sun was perhaps still setting, it appeared like almost night over the arena. The stars twinkled and I refocused my gaze on him, a little confused, and disoriented.

"Wait… is that real? But, it's still daytime." I said.

"You can think of it as a sort of mirage, a trick of the light." He laughed to himself.

"A trick of the light? A mirage?" I questioned further, looking back up at it.

"Yes, just that. A trick of the light. There is no more you need to know about it. And it doesn't matter. Now come, let us duel." He was anxious to start, I see.

I looked back at him, gripping the kendo blade in my hands. "Alright. If I win, I will have won back my friend's honor from you." I stated, seriously.

"Yes, yes I know. And if I win, hmmm.." He began to think for a moment. He was sinister, and I didn't like it. Then he began to laugh.

"Just what is so funny?" I wasn't in the mood for games.

"Well, I don't normally do this. Losers like yourself and the others who have challenged aren't worth more than the time we use for the duel, to me." He began. "But, since you were so brave and foolish enough to challenge me, I say we make this duel a little more interesting." He looked directly at me.

"What do you mean, more interesting?" I asked back.

"Usually, I'd accept the humiliation and defeat of my opponent within seconds as the only prize and satisfaction I need, but this time I'm raising the stakes. We each wager something, an item, up for this duel. The winner takes both of the items, their own, and the loser's. And I'm not just talking any random item, a book isn't worth much to you or me." He continued.

"So what is it you're thinking?" I didn't like where this was going.

"The item you wager has to be something of value, hold some significance to you, that way, it makes things more… painful when you lose." He continued laughing smugly to himself, keeping his hands on the hilt of the sword sticking out of the sheath. Look at him, he was so proud wasn't he?

"Something of value?" I started. "But I don't have…" I thought for a moment, looking down at my bag on the floor, a little ways from me. My eyes widened as I focused on it and remembered the lamp that Wakaba had brought me from her trip.

' _Wait I have Wakaba's lamp!'_

My thoughts echoed.

"But I can't possibly… wager that, I mean.." I spoke out loud, looking down.

' _Oh but what choice do I have?'_

I thought again in frustration.

"Come on, what's taking so long? Do you or do you not have something to put up for this duel? If you don't, then I guess the only thing you CAN wager is that ring of yours. After all, that's what makes you a duelist, makes you able to come here and face me." He smirked.

"Fine.." I began. Thinking: _'I'm sorry Wakaba…'_

I went into my bag and pulled out the lamp she had brought back for me. "I wager this. It's a souvenir that my friend Wakaba brought back for me from her trip to India." I held it up, practically shouting that at him.

"That? And what use would that be to me?" He crossed his arms, taking his hands off his sword.

I smirked. "I mean, wouldn't you be interested in something that's said to hold an all-powerful genie that will grant you any three wishes you want..?" I questioned.

His eyes widened. "Anything I want." He smiled and began to laugh, sinisterly. "That power will soon be mine." He stated as I placed the lamp down by my bag.

"Well that's my item, what's yours?" I asked, glaring at him.

Suddenly, he uncrossed his arms, not taking his eyes off me, and drew the sword from the sheath, pointing it at me, and then holding it across his body, a little ways in front of it. It gleamed in the moonlight above us.

"This. I wager this special weapon of mine, given to the victor of this arena, of this school. Which happens to be me. This sword is quite the item too. To whomever possesses it and wields it, it is said that true swordsmanship skills will come. And obviously, it's rightful owner is me!" He laughed again. I was beginning to become even more convinced that this Saionji character was really insane.

"Alright." I agreed.

"Now, before you start swinging your sword like an amateur, allow me to explain the rules, as we have a set of them here in the dueling arena." He smirked, and looked down, to where my chest would be. I looked down too, following his gaze, and suddenly, in my pocket there appeared to be a white rose placed. To make sure I wasn't seeing things, I blinked; Nope, it was really there. And then I looked up to his chest, a rose was there as well in his pocket, only his was green in color. I think this was more confusing than my math homework last night.

"What the- where did these roses come from? And.. what are they for?" I asked, trying to get to the point of all this. Like I said, I wasn't in the mood for games, and that was what it seemed like Saionji was doing with me, playing a game.

"Relax. These are roses. For the duel." He spoke blandly.

"I can see that." I remarked, smartly.

"Anyway." He interjected, obnoxiously. "We duel, and the one who has their rose cut from their chest automatically loses. Once the duel has begun, until one of our roses are cut off, it will not end, unless of course, you surrender, or… give up." He chuckled to himself. He was really smug, wasn't he?

"Like I would ever surrender someone like you." I growled.

' _I don't know..all I have to do is beat him and I can win back Wakaba's honor from this jerk. All I have to do is cut the rose from his chest and I win, doesn't seem so hard..'_

I thought to myself, feeling a little nervous. But regardless of how nervous I really might have been inside, I took a solid stance and placed my weapon up, pointing at him, with this gleam in my eyes that showed I would never give up. A very determined look, that told him I wouldn't lose this duel, no matter what.

"Alright then, let's duel." I said, readily.

"Very well, let the match begin!" And as he said that, the bells rang in the distance, and he lunged at me. He began to strike left and right; He was a lot better than I intended. Then again, he was the kendo team captain, from what I'd heard, and someone like that would naturally be skilled at dueling. I really had to watch out here, but I wouldn't lose!

I parried a few of his strikes, and jumped back to dodge another one. He wasn't even winded, and I was starting to expend my energy in unwise ways. I would be tired if I tried a new tactic, other than dodging and switching my blade positions to block his, which were met by his force too. But, what did I know about sword fighting, or dueling for that matter?

"You know, if you wish, you can make this easy on yourself and give up and in one swipe, I can cut that rose from your chest." He smirked, taking it sword into his form again, stroking the flat side of it with his fingers, slowly. "You aren't going to win anyway." He remarked smugly.

"I don't intend to lose. I can't afford it." I said, in between breaths.

"Well, if you insist on continuing, the least I could do is making your suffering short and end this right now!" He screamed again and lunged at me, trying even quicker swipes at my rose. But I simply wouldn't let him have it. I jumped to either side, and moved my body accordingly to dodge his attempts at my rose, and parried some of his hits again. But, this time, they were harder, they had more strength to them.

"It's over!" And as he shouted that and went for a strike down from above our heads, I went to block his attack, only to have his sword cut straight through, the already splitting wood of my sword. His attack was so strong in fact, that I had been forced down onto my knees, now holding two halves of the blade that once was whole. I was leaning right by my bag, with my possessions right next to me; Apparently, during all the fighting, we had moved quite a bit.

I was panting now, and my eyes spread wider than they ever could. Oh no, what would I do with my sword cut in two? He began to laugh maniacally again, this time in a more boisterous way.

"Wait.. that sword… is that a real sword..?" I asked, surprised.

"Well of course it's real. What did you think I was fighting with something fake?" He calmed his laugh to nothing, and then continued to smirk in that same devilish way. "In these duels, everything is real. The wager, the fighting, the danger, and most certainly the weapons. There is no plastic swords and foam shields in this arena, and you were foolish enough to bring a wooden one to battle with. And now that it's split in two, it's useless. And I have won the duel." He chuckled again.

"Say goodbye to your rose. And the duel." His eyes went wide, crazy wide, and he raised his sword slowly into the air to make the final attempt at my rose. Though I had put up a good effort in protecting it and keeping myself from losing this duel, it was over, there was nothing more I could do. My sword split in two, and he was right, it was next to useless. Still, I would fight on, as I had promised to do. I just knew it was very unlikely for me to win.

I took a breath in and sighed it out, closing my eyes.

' _I wish to… win this. Grant me the power to win this duel.'_

I thought to myself and reopened my eyes fiercely. He swung downward, and I swung up with the half of my sword that contained most of its blade. And just in that moment, there was a harsh bit of light, it seemed like the illusion of the night time sky had been interrupted by a light that was sunlike, or perhaps it was the moon in that night sky that was shining so brightly. I couldn't tell what it was, all I know is that it was blinding, and coming in my view of his rose.

"Ahhhhhh!" He yelled and continued, though I saw him squint as well, the light was blinding Saionji too.

"Ahhh!" I yelled back, trying my best to get his rose. I closed my eyes once more, and swung full swing.

' _I hope I get his rose.'_

I thought as the strikes were dealt and then the light faded, and the wind blew by, and the bells rang again, which I guess meant the end of the duel. I opened my eyes and he looked dumbfounded. The wind blew green petals away with its gust in the air and I looked at his rose cut apart, one singular petal remaining in his pocket. I looked down to mine, which was still in full tact. He fell to his knees, dropped his sword on the ground, and seemed to be in some kind of trance.

"I… It can't be… I lost…?" Were the only words he could muster.

I dropped both halves of the kendo blade he tore in half and stood up, sighing. I was still catching my breath some, but it was nice to know that this duel was fought and over with. I don't know how I won, or even what happened, all that was important to me was that I won back my friend's honor, and that was that.

"I've taken back Wakaba's honor. If I were you, I'd go apologize to her. She might forgive you for what you said, if you really mean it." I glared at him, and then placed the lamp back into my bag, placed that bag on my back, picked up the sword from his side and walked off, down the stairs and out of this freaky arena.

—

 _ **Outside the dueling arena…**_

I yawned.

"Man, what a day." I started. "What even happened in there?" I looked back upon the arena, which stood above everything else in the distance. Then I shook my head and turned back to face the way I was just going.

"Whatever… I'm just glad to be done with that freaky duel and that weird place, and that jerk. Guess I'll call it a night." I yawned again and went to take another step in the way I was headed to continue my walk back to my dorm, when suddenly, someone popped out from behind the pillar. She appeared to be a student, dressed in the same uniform all the girls wore at my school. Her skin was darker than most, her hair was a dark shade of purple, and she wore round glasses over her eyes. In the middle of her forehead there was a red symbol, which from afar looked to me some kind of dot, and her hands were folded in front of her, each with a golden bracelet around her wrists. She slowly opened her eyes and looked straight me, my blue meeting her jade green.

"Greetings Miss Utena." She spoke, almost emotionlessly. I had never seen her around, and she suddenly appeared and knew my name, this was weird. But then again, I guess I'll just play along for now, after what just happened far be it for me to question things much less the meaning of "weird".

"My name is Anthy Himemiya. And from this day forth, I belong to you." She spoke, softly.

"Nice to meet you Anthy. Come on, I was just on my way home, maybe we can talk more there. After all, I am tired and I wouldn't mind having some company with me tonight." I smiled and began to walk towards my dorm.

"Alright." She agreed. And that was it. For tonight.

—

 **Author's Note:** Hope things are getting interesting. Are you wondering how Utena won the duel and what that bright flash of light was? Were you wondering where the Rose Bride was and why she has suddenly appeared after the duel? Are you getting curious about what's to come next? I hope so! Stay tuned for Chapter 3!


	3. Chapter 3: Anthy

**Disclaimer:** Once more, I do not own Utena, or Aladdin. They are simply some of the things I enjoy.

 **Author's Note:** What? Three chapters up already, and 2 in one day? This is unheard of, right? Nah, it's probably pretty common. But while I have the time and the energy, I really want to complete this story. And then maybe I'll post another chapter tonight to the other one, we'll see. Thank you all for sticking by me and being so patient and reading my things, it means a lot to me.

Hopefully this one turns out to your liking like the others have. So let's get to the action, enough rambling!

Away we go!

—

 **Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp**

 **Chapter 3** **:** **Anthy**

 _ **The next morning…**_

I had been so tired last night that I passed out as soon as I got back to the dorm. I told that weird girl to make herself comfortable and get in the spare bed for the night, so she could sleep; I don't know if she took my advice or not. But, it was another morning, another day and I needed to get up.

I yawned and stretched, sitting up and placing my legs over the edge of my mattress. Since I slept in the bottom bunk, they touched the floor, and when I opened my eyes, I saw that the girl was already awake and dressed in her uniform. She had made tea for herself and a left a cup sitting there for me, Chu chu was, of course, on the table, eating away a cracker.

I was surprised to see her up, and a little scared that she had managed to do all this before I woke up, and so silently too.

"Good morning Miss Utena." Was all she said.

"Good morning…" I started slowly. I stood up, and it was only then that I realized the whole room had been cleaned and looked pretty spotless too. It looked like new top to bottom, not like the run down old place that I was sleeping in last night. Did she do this? And if so, how?

"I hope you don't mind, I cleaned up a bit around here. It looked like it could use some tidying up." She took a sip of her tea.

"No… of course I don't, it's just… so you did… how did you do all this? When, did you do all this?" I questioned, walking over to the table, and sitting down at the cup set up for me.

"When you were sleeping." She spoke, placing her cup down gently.

"You mean were able to clean this whole room while I was sleeping and not once did you even wake me?" I was a little more than shocked.

"You are a heavy sleeper." She remarked back, in almost a sing song voice.

"I guess I must be." I sat back, taking that in.

"And the tea kettle? How did it not wake me?" I asked, pointing to the cups of tea on the table.

"Hurry Miss Utena, if you don't drink your tea, it will get cold." She avoided my question entirely. My finger drooped and I thought for a moment more, before looking down at the cup, the steam rising up to my face. It was warm.

"Look.." I started and looked at her. I was so tired, I couldn't remember her name. But thankfully, she provided it for me.

"Anthy." She smiled softly, even just a little one curving her lips.

"Anthy." I nodded. "I appreciate that you want to show me some respect, but, could you please.. stop with all the 'Miss Utena' stuff? It's a little weird, you can just call me Utena, okay?" I smiled.

"Yes, Miss Utena." I sighed.

"Guess not." I then fixed the tea just the way I liked it. I took a sip, and then set it down, feeling the soothing, warm feeling go down my throat.

"So.. why are you doing all this? I mean, you could have left earlier this morning when you got up. You didn't have to do all this for me." I said.

"I wanted to." She answered. "So I did it." She added. "Is it not to your liking?" She asked, though it didn't seem like she was concerned too much whether it was or not. She was almost like a robot, of sorts, I mean, if I told her to do something, she'd do it, probably. But… I can't think of her that way. I mean, that's wrong - she's a human being. And treating her like a robot would just be plain cruel.

"Well okay, thanks." I smiled once again and took a sip of my tea, then setting it down. "So… sorry I was so tired last night, otherwise I would have stayed up and talked to get to know more about you." I rubbed the back of my head apologetically.

"It's alright." She said, without missing a beat.

"Well, if you're sure it's okay." I went along with it, moving to my next question. "So.. I haven't seen you around school before, are you new, maybe?" I posed.

"Why would you ask something like that, Miss Utena?" She asked calmly, taking another sip of her tea. She wasn't even making eye contact with me.

"Well it's just… that… you're wearing the girls' uniform of the school I attend, is all." I looked at her outfit.

"I like this." She again, cryptically said.

"Really?" I asked. I was about to continue my thought before, she, surprisingly, interjected.

"Yes -." She was looking at my uniform hanging on a coat hanger. "Why do you wear a boys' uniform, Miss Utena?" She questioned, taking another sip of the tea in her hands.

"Well… uh… because I like to, I guess." I could almost feel the metaphorical sweat drop rolling down the side of my face, and that awkward smile posted all over my expression.

"Precisely." She smiled at me, and then set her teacup down.

There were a few moments of silence before, I decided to ask another question.

"So, um, why were you wandering out there alone at night?" I was a little concerned; You never know what might happen at night and I only wanted her to be safe.

"Why were you?" She threw back at me.

"Well I was just coming from a duel. I don't even wanna think about that anymore." I rolled my eyes, thinking back to it some, and just how weird it really was. "I was glad to be done with it, and was walking my way home, back to the dorm." I answered her question.

"I see." She said.

"So what were you doing outside at that time of night?" I asked again, leaning in a little closer. After a moment, she softly said…

"Mysteries."

"Mysteries? Wha- you mean you don't even know?" I sat back and crossed my arms in disbelief. Was she messing around with me? No, but, she seemed so sincere. Ah well, might as well get to know more about her then.

"So Anthy, are you going to attend Ohtori Academy from now on?" I asked kindly.

"Yes." She answered rather quickly.

"Okay, and where are you going to stay?" I asked.

"Here." She answered again, rather quickly.

"Here?" I asked, a little surprised. "Wait, what do you mean? I'm assigned to live here by myself." I looked at her, confused.

"I think it's best if I am around you, while I am here, which means I will be living with you too. From yesterday on I belong to you, Miss Utena, so it would be silly if I didn't live with you." She was just so… mysterious.

"Right.. Anthy…" I said a little uneasily. Belong to me? No, that's ridiculous, no one human being belonged to another human being. "You don't belong to me. But if you want to live here, then I suppose I don't have objections. It could be kinda fun. I bet we could even be friends." I smiled and she looked at me, perhaps a bit perplexed.

"Friends?" She asked.

"Yes, friends. I think it'd be nice to get along while you stay with me, don't you think?" I laughed a little. And for once, the smile grew a little more than she intended on her face. And though it was quickly growing, she was able to stop it, once her lips visibly curved just a bit.

"Yes, I think that would be nice." She answered back, almost answering my question with the same wording in a statement. She was a puzzle, that I didn't ever intend to figure out - but as long as I am stuck with her, the least I could do was show her what friendship was like. She didn't seem to know what it was the way she looked at me, and I doubt, if I hadn't seen her around school, no one had, and that means she wouldn't know anyone. Well, that just means I'll have to stick by her and make her feel comfortable is all.

"Okay, so what grade are you in Anthy?" I asked.

"Same as you." She answered.

"That means we're the same age. We probably have a lot of classes together." I thought.

"Yes." She agreed.

"I should probably get ready for school." I took one final sip of my tea, and then stood up to get my uniform on. Almost on cue, she took the teacups into the kitchen and began to wash them, poured the rest of the hot water down the sink, and set the kettle back on the stovetop. That gave me just enough time to get my uniform on, and grab my bag full of books and the lamp. Anthy grabbed her bag, and we were out the door and on our way to school.

—

 _ **At school…**_

As we were walking into school, it was rather quiet. I couldn't think of anything to say to her, and she, I guess, couldn't think of anything to say to me. So there was no conversation, and for a moment I was able to enjoy some peace. I had slept well, so I didn't feel tired, just well rested. She followed close behind me, which made me just a tad uneasy. I had hoped she'd walk right next to me.

But suddenly…

"Utena!" I heard a voice cry out, and before I could turn around to see who had called me, she leaped into the air and onto my back. I smiled.

"HI Wakaba." I muttered under her weight.

"I knew you were my true love!" She exclaimed.

"What did I do this time?" I asked.

"What? The whole school is talking about it. They all say that they heard you beat Saionji in a duel. That's unheard of. Saionji is the Vice President of the Student Council and Captain of the Kendo Team here at Ohtori, and no one has ever beat him in a duel before. But now you have. And you did it all for me! Utena!" She cried and hugged me tighter.

"Ah… it was nothing, I guess. To tell you the truth, I was just settling the score with him, I don't even know how I won." I smiled. "But I'm glad I did, and I'm glad I made you feel better." That was all that mattered. Suddenly, Wakaba quieted and let go, pointing a curious finger at the girl, now, standing next to me.

"Who's your friend, Utena?" She asked.

"Wakaba, this is Anthy Himemiya. Anthy, this is my best friend Wakaba." I introduced them.

"Hello." Anthy said.

"Nice to meet you." Wakaba said back. "So, where did she come from?" Was her next question.

"Well uh, she sorta found her way into the school and needed a place to stay. So I thought she could stay with me because you know my room has an extra bed and I don't have a roommate." I laughed nervously. I needed to come up with something or Wakaba might get all suspicious.

"Oh okay, well that's really nice of you Utena. You're always so kind." She smiled.

"Yes, she is." Anthy agreed. I blushed a bit.

"Well, wherever you came from, I sure hope you like Ohtori. It's big and beautiful, especially all the roses." Wakaba remarked.

"I'm sure I will like it here. Roses are beautiful." She smiled at Wakaba, who smiled back at her.

"Well, thank you Utena, I didn't get a chance to say it to you since you stuck up for me. But hey, I gotta go! I have to be somewhere. So I'll see you later Utena, nice to meet you Anthy!" She waved and ran off.

"She seems nice." Anthy said, after a moment.

"She is. That's Wakaba for you. You never can keep her in one place for too long. She's a really good friend." I smiled, recounting some of the memories in my head of the good times we've had here.

"Okay." Anthy answered in that same almost sing-song tone of voice.

And it was then, without another moment to pass, and without any more conversation, that we made our way to our morning classes.

—

 _ **At lunchtime…**_

The bell rang for lunch and I stretched as I got up from the desk I'd been sitting at too long. I packed my books into my bag and thought for a moment where I'd like to eat lunch today. The spot in the Rose Garden seemed like a good one. Nice and quiet, with no one to disturb me.

Checking that I had packed my lunch that I made the previous night and that it was in my bag, which it was, I closed up my bag and placed it on my back, for my next stop: The Rose Garden. But, as I turned around, I was met by a pair of jade green eyes, and a form a little smaller than me in height. It was Anthy.

"Anthy..?" I seemed a little surprised to see her.

"Hello Miss Utena." She greeted.

"I thought you would already be at lunch or something." I remarked.

"I have my lunch right here." She said. I looked down to her folded hands, which, did have her lunch in them. It was in a box, to keep it fresh. I looked back up, our gazes meeting.

"I see." Was the only thing I could say. "Well… I was just going to the Rose Garden for lunch, if you want you can join me. I mean it's quiet there, and hardly anyone ever comes in to disturb you. It's peaceful, and the best part is, it smells like flowers. I mean, I've never been big on flowers, myself, but the scent of roses always gets to me somehow." I trailed.

"Eating in the Rose Garden sounds lovely." She said awaking me from my daydream.

"Alright, then let's go to the Rose Garden." I smiled and we started to walk over there.

—

We sat on the floor and opened up our lunches, the door closed, the sun coming in through the glass that surrounded us, and the scent of flowers sifting in the air. It was serene.

I took a bite of the sandwich I had made for myself, and began to talk.

"I really don't know that much about you." I said, mouth half full of food.

She began to set up her lunch and answered back, "What would you like to know, Miss Utena?" She said kindly.

"Well, let's see… I know your name. We're the same age. In the same classes. You're living with me now.. hm.. where are you from?" I asked, thinking of what I could ask her, having swallowed the piece of food that was in my mouth.

"Not too far." She said vaguely. Well I suppose I wasn't really going to get to know her until time passed and did its think. You can't force a friendship after all. So I sighed and thought of something, more out of the ordinary to ask her. I looked at my open bag and saw the lamp, that's it!

"Hey Anthy." I started.

"Yes?" She answered.

"If you were given a magical lamp with a genie inside, what would you wish for?" I asked creatively.

"What?" She looked at me, perhaps a little confused.

"I said, if you were given a magical lamp, with a genie inside of it that could grant you any three wishes, what would you wish for?" I asked again.

"Well.. I…" She took a moment, tapped her chin, and looked around the Rose Garden to think. Had I finally stumped her? Then she looked back down and finished unpacking her lunch, closing the lunchbox she had it in. "I suppose whatever you could think of is fine. I think you have some lovely ideas." She said softly.

"What? But, Anthy… it's not up to me. It's your choice, your decision, your… wish. I can't make that for you, it just wouldn't be right." I pleaded. I looked at her, and she finally looked up at me and caught my gaze. After a moment of her eyes twinkling, I finally saw her start to move her lips to answer me.

But instead, what came out was.. "It wouldn't be right?" She asked.

"No, it wouldn't be right." I stated. "You can't make your mind up for someone else. You have to let them decide. When you wish for something, it's because you want it to come true, not anyone else. So think of something you want more than anything else in this entire world, and tell me, what would you wish for?" I asked, curious.

She took a moment and looked down, mumbling: "Freedom." She said even more softly than she normally would speak.

"Freedom?" I just barely caught what she said, she nodded. But why freedom? "Anthy…" I started to say.

"Yes, Miss Utena?" She continued in that same low, soft tone she just had.

I was about to ask why, but looking at her, she seemed to almost be in pain, in some kind of sorrow, or agony. In some kind of thoughtful mood, and if I were to disturb that and ask why then it might make her cry or even more upset than she appeared to be - and I didn't want to do that. She adjusted her gaze at me, and though I felt this aura of sadness coming off of her, in her eyes, she seemed fine, as she always was.

I looked at her and she looked at me, and then I finally said…

"You don't have to tell me." I smiled softly. "Nevermind." I shook my head.

"Okay." She just agreed.

There was a few more moments of silence, where I began to cram the food into my mouth and wash it down with the water bottle drink I brought. And only after finishing my final sip and swallowing all that was in my mouth did she set down her drink and ask me a question.

"Miss Utena." She called.

"What is it?" I answered.

"You mentioned before you were coming from a duel." She stated.

"Yes, last night." I nodded.

"Do you fight these duels often?" She asked.

"No, last night was just something I did for my friend. The friend you met earlier, Wakaba." I said, casually.

"I see, you were fighting for your friend then?" She asked.

"Yes." I said.

"Okay." She said. "Did something happen?" She then continued, slowly.

"Well…" I began. "I guess it could have been spared the fight now that I think about it, but I guess something did happen and at the time it was a pretty big deal to me." I rubbed the back of my head with a small laugh.

"What happened, Miss Utena?" She continued, just a bit curiously.

"Well that guy I was fighting against, his name is Saionji. And he's a real jerk. I mean, you heard Wakaba before, he's the Vice President of the Student Council and the Captain of the Kendo Team, so he thinks he's big stuff, and some of the girls here obviously think he is too." I rolled my eyes. Just thinking about him made me a little bothered.

"I see." She nodded. "And Wakaba?" She continued.

"Wakaba - I think she has feelings for that creep. Well, I think he's a creep, she, for whatever reason, sees something in him that she likes, that I guess I just don't. Anyways, the big jerk broke her heart right in front of me, she ran off crying and I had to do something about it. So I did it the only way I knew he'd understand, with fighting. He's the one who said it was a duel in the first place and told me to meet him in that weird place after school." I explained.

"Weird place?" She asked.

"Yes, there's a dueling arena forest not too far from the school. And I met him up there for the duel like he asked. I brought a kendo stick with me, and he brought his sword, which you saw me carrying last night when we… met." I paused, thinking. "He had us each wager something of importance to us. So he chose his special sword and I chose my lamp." I said.

"Lamp." She stated, but tried to make it seem like it was a question.

"Yeah, this one." I took it out gently from my bag, and it looked a little less dusty than the last I saw it. Her eyes widened. "This is a souvenir that Wakaba got for me when she went to India recently. Everyone keeps telling me that it holds some really powerful genie with magical powers that can grant me any three wishes I want. Kinda strange huh?" I laughed.

"Yes, I suppose it does seem strange." She agreed. "So how did you win the duel?" She asked, bringing me back to the topic of the duel.

"Oh right - uh, actually I don't know. Saionji had managed to split my wooden blade into two pieces and I thought it was all over after that. So I closed my eyes and wished for the power to win the duel, and the next thing I knew I won, even with the two halves of the kendo blade. I guess either luck was on my side, or that was some kind of miracle." I smiled.

"You wished for the power?" She asked, though it seemed more like a statement in some way.

"Yeah, and I guess I must have got it." I was happy that I did, and was able to restore Wakaba's happiness and her honor.

"Yes you did." She said. I looked at her a little puzzled at what she meant. But then she continued, "Miss Utena, there's something I must tell you…" She started.

I listened in, "What is it Anthy?" I asked.

But before she could tell me, the bell rang for lunchtime to be over and our return to classes.

"Shoot there's the bell. I guess you'll just have to wait to tell me after school, sorry Anthy." I apologized and packed up my things and stood up. She did so as well.

"That's quite alright, Miss Utena. I suppose, some other time, then." She stated kindly, as her eyes looked downward. "Are we off to class now?" She asked me, quietly.

"Yeah, we gotta go back now." I nodded and we were to return to classes for the rest of the afternoon. But, what did Anthy want to tell me?

—

 **Author's Note:** Things are getting interesting~. Are they not?

Wanna find out what happens? Then stay tuned for the next installment of this story series.

The absolute destiny apocalypse~. ^-^


	4. Chapter 4: Wonderful

**Disclaimer:** Do not own.

 **Author's Note:** Hey y'all. Been a while hasn't it? Sorry, just been busy and haven't felt like writing much is all. But I suppose I'll write another chapter in here, for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy.

—

 **Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp**

 **Chapter 4** **: Wonderful**

 _Time Skip: Several months._

It had been many months since Anthy and I met. And in those several months gone by, we've become pretty close friends. I've gotten to know more about her, and she has gotten to know a lot more about me. I gotta say, living with her is completely different from how I imagined it'd be; I thought it might be a little awkward and we could potentially be in each other's way, but, actually, it turned out to be the complete opposite. Living with Anthy is kinda nice; Sure, every now and again I wish I had some more privacy, but, it was good to have company around, someone to talk to - That way I wouldn't feel as lonely. And it was even better that we'd become such good friends.

Tonight was a Saturday night; Anthy was sitting at the table, seemingly reading something, and I was doing some stretches. It was boring; There was nothing to do on Saturdays except stay at home and clean. I mean, I guess you could sleep, but eventually you might get a little tired of that too.

I sighed as I completed my stretches, and stood back up to my full height.

"Hey Anthy." I started, looking at her. She didn't even look up at me, she just turned the page in the book she was reading. Or maybe it was a magazine, I couldn't tell from where I was. "Do you maybe wanna go out and do something?" I asked; Not sure how to approach this situation.

"What do you mean, Miss Utena?" She asked, her green eyes skimming the pages that were in front of her. I caught a small glare from the her eyeglasses off the light that was still turned on in our main room.

"Come on Anthy." I started again, moving a little closer. From where I was standing now, I could see that it was some sort of magazine. Funny, I never took Anthy for the type to read something most teen girls would read. But then again, even though she may be strange sometimes, I suppose Anthy is just a regular teenage girl, like me. Ah well. I sighed. "It's been months since we've met, and you're still calling me 'Miss' Utena? I told you, you can just call me Utena." I smiled and chuckled a little bit, to show that I wasn't trying to sound like I was coming down on her, hard.

"But, Miss Utena." She stated and looked up at me finally. I sighed. I guess it was a lost cause.

"Nevermind." I shook my head, not wanting to cause an argument.

Speaking of arguments, it was rather strange. Sometimes there would be tension between, where I might have sensed that Anthy disagreed with me, but we never really… fought. She never took a stance on anything, and I was beginning to wonder if she even had a will of her own.

No, I couldn't listen to the lies that Touga was feeding me about Anthy. She was just a regular teenage girl like, with wants and desires of her own. She has her own will, I know she does.

"Okay." She said, after a small pause in the conversation. It was then that she closed the magazine and stood up herself.

"Hey wait, where are you going?" I asked, confused.

"You said you wanted to go outside, yes?" She asked, with her back turned to me.

"Well yeah, but that doesn't mean that you have to if you don't want to. I'm just bored, so I was just thinking that maybe we could go and find something fun to do." I explained to her, rubbing the back of my head nervously.

"If you want to go, then I will go with you, Miss Utena." She turned her head back just enough so I could see her smile at me, in a friendly way, and then go to grab her coat. It was weird; Though Anthy had smiled, it seemed… well it just seemed so… empty.

Needless to say, I went to grab my coat as well, and we were out the door.

—

 _ **Outside…**_

We walked around the campus; It was big, after all. She pointed out to me some of the things that caught her eye, and I smiled and explained what I knew about them. We talked a little bit about life here at Ohtori and classes; The usual stuff. Nothing really exciting was happening, but, I was having fun. It seemed to preoccupy our loads of time in the best way.

We walked for a little bit more, and then decided to take a break over by a fountain. I wasn't sure they ran it at night like they did in the daytime, but the sparkles the water had looking down and in on it, were pretty. I sat on the concrete ledge, and she sat with me; The wind was just slight tonight.

"Are you having fun, Anthy?" I asked her.

"Yes, are you?" She answered back almost robotically.

"Yes." I smiled.

It was only after a minute or so that I realized, we weren't the only ones here. There was a certain figure standing on the other side of the fountain, around the statue in the middle that was looking at the stars above his head. He had his hands in his pockets, and seemed to be rather solemn.

He turned and I adjusted so that it looked like I wasn't staring. But slowly, he walked over to me, where I was sitting, with Anthy right next to me.

Figures, it had to be him. He smirked and greeted me in such a smug way.

"Ah hello there Miss Tenjou. Lovely night for stargazing, is it not?" His long red hair blew in the direction of the breeze and he set his violet eyes onto me.

I sighed, and looked down, then back up at him. I wasn't going to let Touga ruin a beautiful night like this, not when I was having so much fun with Anthy. "Yeah, I was just on a walk with Anthy." I answered back.

"Oh? Things getting a little boring for you in the dorms, are they?" She almost chuckled.

"Well, sorta." I made a face and looked off to the side.

"Ah, where are my manners? I completely forgot, pardon me." He turned in the direction of Anthy and bowed. "Hello Miss Himemiya."

"Hello, Mr. President." She bowed her head and answered him.

"Anyway Touga." I started. "What are you doing out here at this time of night?" I asked.

"I just told you. I was stargazing. I hope that's not a problem for you." He said playfully. "But I would be careful if I were you, things are known to get a little… spooky, around these parts after dark." He smirked and turned his back to me so I couldn't see his face. He tilted his head to look up at the moon this time.

"Stop trying to scare us." I crossed my arms. "Nothing bad ever happens at Ohtori Academy, I think you're just pulling my leg." I shook my head.

"Fine, you don't have to take my word for it." Nothing really seemed to bother this guy, did it?

There was a small moment of pause, when I realized he had stopped talking completely, and the wind had stopped blowing. I stood up slowly, fastening my eyes on him.

"What do you want?" Sensing that there was something he was going to ask me.

"I want a duel." He spoke flat out. The wind gusted by in a heavier breeze than had previously been blowing. He turned around, and his hair whipped around with him. As he finished turning to face me, the wind died down and his gaze focused on me, hard.

"A duel?" I spoke slowly.

"Yes, meet me in the dueling arena forest tomorrow. We have no school, so that works out perfectly. I'll be waiting there around noon, bring your weapon of choice and we will duel." He spoke deliberately, and then turned his back to me once more, beginning to walk away.

"Wait." I said and he stopped, listening. "What are we fighting for anyway?" I asked. "Is this really necessary. Touga, does this really have to happen?" I asked, pleading with him. Though I wasn't too fond of his style, and of his reputation as a playboy, I couldn't deny that Touga was a nice guy once you got to know him; And though he may be cunning, I had learned to care about him just a little bit. I considered him a friend, and there isn't any way I would raise a weapon to a friend.

He looked down and the tone in his voice was sorrowful. I could tell his eyes were closed now.

"Yes." He said bravely and began to walk away. "I cannot tell you what it is we're fighting for, but it is a necessary fight. You'll see." He said and disappeared into the darkness of the night. Anthy stood up, perhaps a bit concerned.

"Miss Utena?" She questioned and placed a shaky hand on my arm. I placed my hand over hers and she stopped shaking. Slowly I turned to face her, and though my expression was previously that of worry, I simply smiled softly as our gazes met. She did as well.

"Don't worry Anthy. It's okay." She lingered a few more moments before letting go of me, and then I yawned and stretched my arms up above my head. "Well now that I have that to do tomorrow, I guess we should head back and get some sleep huh?" I began to walk in the direction of our dorm.

"Yes." She nodded silently. We started to walk back together, side by side, and after another moment of pause, I smiled and spoke up.

"Hey Anthy." I started again.

"Yes?" She said.

"Thanks, I really had a good time tonight."

"Me too, Miss Utena." She nodded and we disappeared into the night's curtain and back to our dorm, where we slept soundly with smiles on our faces.

—

 _ **Back in the dorm…**_

I yawned and opened the door, entering our room together. Anthy followed quietly behind me, and closed the door gently. I took off my shoes by the bed, tossing them anywhere, meanwhile Anthy, took hers off by the door and neatly left them next to the placemat.

Chu-chu was already on the table, laying in a bed of cracker and cookie crumbs, asleep, with a snot bubble coming out of his nose. As he inhaled and exhaled, the snot grew and shrank, grew and shrank. I sat on my bunk and smiled at him, sleeping peacefully. Over time, the little guy had grown on me quite a bit, and I was considering him my friend too.

Anthy walked into the kitchen and poured some water into the tea kettle, starting up the stove to boil the water.

"Would you like a cup of tea, Miss Utena?" She called to me.

"No, no thanks Anthy. I'm good." I replied, laying on my bed and folding my arms under my head.

"Okay." She said, as I heard some clanking going on in the other room. She must have been getting a teacup for herself and setting up the teabag in it as well. The spoon was probably set aside too. Now all there was left to do was wait, and as she did, she made her way back to the main room, which also contained our bunk beds and sat by the table on the side nearest me so we could chat.

For a few moments it was silent, before I decided to speak up, looking at the bottom of the top bunk bed.

"So… another one huh?" My eyes trekked across the wooden support boards beneath the mattress.

"Another what, Miss Utena?" Anthy asked, looking at me, curiously. She had her hands folded neatly in her lap, and she was sitting on her legs, with her legs underneath her.

"Duel." I answered her, softly. "I wonder why suddenly… the Student Council President wants to fight me in that same strange place that Saionji did. And more importantly, what is it he could want?" I thought out loud, speaking my thoughts. Anthy remained quiet and listened to me ramble. "I don't have anything of value to him, and if things happen the same as last time, I'm going to have to wager my lamp again.." I trailed, as I thought about what could possibly happen.

Anthy remained quiet for another moment. She seemed to look away at the mention of the lamp; Out of my periphery I could see her look at the floor as if something were suddenly interesting down there. But I didn't question it; Perhaps she was thinking just as hard as I was about this, it really was… confusing. After another moment's passing, she finally spoke up.

"I don't know Miss Utena." She said. Her voice was sweet, but in this setting it was partly ominous. "But you have a sword too." She pointed out, merely making another gentle suggestion.

"Oh yeah! That's right!" I exclaimed, my eyes going wider than they'd usually be. "I have that sword I won off Saionji. I could wager that, I suppose. I don't really have a purpose for it anyway." I thought out loud again. "But… what if someone else challenges me to a duel? Saionji's sword will be a big help if that happens." I considered the possibility. "I guess I have no choice but to wager my lamp again." I sighed, and closed my eyes.

Anthy just answered me quietly… "Of course, Miss Utena, do as you wish." She almost seemed sad; But I'm sure she was fine.

There was another few moments of silence; Neither of us really knew what to say; But then suddenly, Anthy had an idea. Or rather, a question.

"Miss Utena?" She began softly, looking down at her hands. I opened my eyes and turned over on my side to face her. I cocked my eyebrows curiously.

"What's up Anthy?" I said softly.

"Earlier… you asked me about what I would wish for if I had a genie to grant my wish." She started. I nodded. "What I desired more than anything." She continued, she still wouldn't look at me. I just continued to watch her, listening to where this could possibly go. After another moment, she finally pushed out… "What would you wish for, Miss Utena?" She looked up at me, and the gleam of her glasses reflected onto the skin of my arm just slightly.

"What would I wish for?" I repeated, as I looked at Chu-chu on the table one more time. He was still sound asleep.

"Yes." She answered softly. "What is something you want… more than anything in this entire world?" She phrased the question the same as I did. I thought for a moment, and I mean really thought hard about what I would wish for; And nothing really came to mind. I could wish for just about anything in the world; You really expect me to pick from that?

"It's alright if you do not know." She added, after a moment or two of my silence.

"No wait." I said, after another moment of pause between us. Our conversations were normally just as disjointed as our personalities were, and yet in some weird way, they seemed to match up and flow nicely; Just like Anthy and I. "I know what I would wish for." I spoke next.

"What is it?" She asked inquisitively.

"To be a prince." I spoke simply.

"To be a prince?" She asked, repeating what I said.

"Yes, to be…a noble prince, who saves princesses. It's been a dream of mine since I was young. I want it to come true more than anything in the entire world." I spoke, fixing my position back to laying on my back, staring up at the bottom of the top bunk. "But… it's a dumb wish anyway. Wishes just don't happen, if I want it to become a reality, I have to keep at working at it. Right?" I smiled, and closed my eyes for a moment, trying to picture the old memory of the prince on the white horse that visited me when I was little. It was fuzzy and I could barely remember his face; But I could remember what he told me. It began to echo in my mind, and as it did; it was interrupted by another voice, which rang out sweetly, coming from right beside me.

"I don't think your wish is stupid at all." She spoke matter-of-factly. "I think your dream is wonderful, Miss Utena." She smiled, just slightly. I opened my eyes and blushed just faintly. I couldn't help that; I was used to the weird looks and the even weirder opinions given to me about it; But Anthy was different. Anthy, didn't think it was strange at all. Anthy thought it was wonderful. Anthy thought… it was wonderful. And that, was something else entirely. I couldn't really explain it; But, what she said, it just… made me happy. Truly, happy.

"Thanks." I could barely speak. I had felt a little embarrassed sharing that with her, since it never came up in conversation before anyway. I was nervous; But, still, she said she thought it was wonderful. I smiled silently to myself, I closed my eyes, and relaxed once more.

The room fell quiet once more, and with another few moments to pass us by; My eyes sprang open and I sat up with a small inhale of realization.

"Oh yeah. Anthy." I said, as she focused her gaze back on me again. "Didn't you say you had something to tell me?" She nodded silently. "What was it?" I asked curiously.

She took in a breath and let it go, steadying herself. Then, she opened her mouth to speak, beginning with the word: "Well.." But, before she was able to complete her sentence, the tea kettle began to whistle and the water was done boiling. She stood up.

"Pardon." She said as she walked back into the kitchen and shut the stove off. Letting the water cool a little more, she lifted the tea kettle and poured some of the hot water into her cup. She fixed the tea how she liked, placing the spoon inside the cup, and stirring it gently. She left the spoon inside as she grabbed the tea cup and plate it was set on with both hands, walking back into the main room. She sat down and blew on the tea some, taking a sip of it slowly.

I laid back down. "So.. what was it you had to tell me Anthy?" I asked, a little more sleepily now.

Anthy glanced subtly at the clock and read the time. She took another sip of the hot tea in her cup and then softly spoke, after swallowing…

"It's getting late, Miss Utena. You should be getting some sleep. You have a big duel tomorrow, after all." She said softly. I yawned and closed my eyes, rolling over onto my side facing away from her.

"I guess you're right." I agreed. "G-goodnight… Anthy… " I was fading fast, but I was just able to get those words out before I fell into slumber.

"Goodnight… Miss Utena." She said softly, in almost a whisper, taking another sip of her tea, and watching me sleep. Soon, she'd climb into bed as well and allow dreams to take her.

 **[End of Chapter 4].**


	5. Chapter 5: A Friendship, Absent

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Revolutionary Girl Utena or Aladdin. All rights go to Disney and the makers of Revolutionary Girl Utena.

 **Author's Note:** Hey sorry guys, I totally fell off track with this story didn't I? But I've decided I need to finish it. I just have a lot of things going on in my life currently and it will only continue to get busier, plus when you have the energy to work on a story you want to work on the one that is more fresh in your mind, which unfortunately, sometimes leaves these types of stories on the back burner. But I am more determined now than ever now that I have reread and reminded myself what needs to be done with this story.

So let's go on with the rest of it, I hope you enjoy. Sorry that the updates took so long, but I never intended this to be a long story to begin with.

—

 **Utena: The Chosen of the Lamp**

 **Chapter 5:** **A Friendship, Absent**

So today was the big day of the duel. I was up, surprisingly, at 8 am, and Anthy, was up way before me, despite going to bed later that night. I couldn't figure her out; was she a night owl or an early bird? Well, I suppose someone could be both. And that someone if I'd ever seen it was Anthy.

I yawned when I first woke up and decided to head to the shower area to take a quick shower. Once that was done, I dried off and got dressed in my clothes, and walked into the room, drying my hair. It was quite long, so it took a little longer to dry than the rest of me. She smiled softly as I entered the room and as I found eye contact with her, I smiled as well.

"Good morning Miss Utena. How did you sleep?" She asked. I saw her in the kitchen before I left to shower, and now, as I walked in, I saw her walk over to the table in the main room and set down a tray with two cups of tea on it, and some other breakfast items. There was even a little cookie pouch for Chu-Chu as he would be joining us for breakfast soon enough.

"I slept alright, I guess." I answered her causally and took a seat by the table. The smell of the tea permeated the air and I couldn't help but close my eyes a bit to enjoy it. Not only that but the warmth radiated all the way up to the skin on my face and after a shower that always felt nice. I began to fix it with the sugar she had set out and the milk cup she had put milk into as well. Things had really changed since Anthy had been here and this morning routine was something I could really get used to.

Well, being that it had been several months since Anthy first came to live with me, I would say I am quite used to it now. She was always so thoughtful and knew exactly what to do even when I didn't ask her. Oh - she wasn't my servant or anything, but I'd come to think of her as more than just a roommate, definitely.

"Good." She answered me.

"How did you sleep?" I asked. And then I paused for a moment looking at her. "Wait, did you even get to sleep, Anthy?" I asked, curiously.

She nodded, and perhaps this time let a small giggle sneak by. Although it was faintly heard, I caught it and that just made me smile more. The sound of her laugh was something I'd never heard over the time I'd known her and it was a great sound to hear finally. "I did get some sleep. And I slept just fine, thank you." She said so politely. Where was this girl raised, in a palace or something? I was beginning to think she was some kind of classically trained princess. I blinked.

"Well that's good. I don't want you to be all exhausted today if you didn't get any sleep. And besides. it's not healthy to stay up all night." I remarked and she seemed perplexed. I wasn't looking at her because I was busy setting up my breakfast plate to eat but she looked at me doing so, in puzzlement. No one had really ever been worried about her like that before. She founded it strange, a new feeling she'd have to get used to, that someone was actually concerned for her well-being, and though she couldn't understand it, it made her even the slightest bit more relaxed. She felt this warm feel welling up inside her, and though she might not have been able to recognize it on her own, to anyone else it would have been seen as happiness.

Happiness to Anthy was one of those things that she saw happening to other people and just never wondered nor thought it could happen to herself. She knew that there was happiness in the world, that sometimes people experience these sensations of being happy. She knew what happiness was, a feeling, but she could never have pictured herself feeling this way. And furthermore, she would never have felt this way when someone was worrying about her.

She'd been so used to being used. She was so used to being passed around from person to person, and though she usually blocked out her memories of the things that people have made her do, the wishes and desires of others she had made come true for those others she used to 'belong' to, she had never once been worried about and looked after in the manner that I was doing for her, even if I was unaware of what I was doing.

No of all her previous 'masters' she'd been with me currently the longest. And to Anthy that was something special, she was liking the time she was getting outside of her life of servitude to others. She liked the time she was spending with me, just the same as I was liking the time I got to spend with her. And though she was still quite a mystery to me, I knew somewhere deep inside Anthy was happy to be my friend, right?

"Don't worry about me, Miss Utena." She said in her usual way. "I will be just fine. Did you get enough sleep?" She asked in return. I don't know if that was her way of saying she was worried about me or if she was just making conversation. I could never really tell with Anthy. She was always so nonchalant and cordial… it was hard enough to decipher the look on her face that hardly ever changed too much. But I had every faith that Anthy returned the same feelings to me, that I felt for her right?

"Yeah, I got enough sleep, thanks Anthy. And thanks for this amazing breakfast and tea. After eating this, there's no way I won't be able to stand up to Touga." I chuckled a bit, trying to pump myself up for this battle. It wasn't something I was looking forward to, that's for sure. I was trying my best to think about this from any perspective I could; why in the world would Touga want to fight me? It seemed so random and it just didn't make any sense. But I knew that there was no getting out of it; if it's one thing about the President that I know, it's that when his mind is made up, it's made up. He's determined, for certain.

Anthy blinked as she watched me think really hard about this. She decided to chime in to make sure I was okay. "Miss Utena?" She began.

"Yes?" I answered snapping back to reality.

"Are you alright?" She asked. "You seem worried." She said quietly taking a sip of her tea.

"I'm fine. It's just Touga… I can't see why he would suddenly approach me and wager a battle against me like that. He doesn't seem like the type to fight for no reason, so there must be something he wants. But I can't put my finger on it." I tapped my chin in thought. She suggested something out of the blue.

"Perhaps… he wants possession of you." She said.

I blinked and my eyes went a little wide. "Say what? He wants possession of me?" I pointed to myself almost falling over. Chu-Chu was climbing the leg of the table now to reach the cookies set out for him.

"Yes." She continued calmly. "Perhaps he wishes to possess you as his own, and that is why he wishes to battle you. It's the same with any other thing is it not?" Anthy continued and I just listened to what she was saying. "When two swordsman battle for an object, the winner takes the object. So perhaps that object is you." She spoke. I think this is the longest I've ever heard her speak at once. I blinked.

"You mean he's dueling for my freedom? But Touga isn't that type of guy…" I thought out loud. A pause and then. "Is he…?"

Anthy didn't even miss a beat with this answer. "Who's to say?" She said calmly. "It is only a suggestion, Miss Utena. It doesn't have to be the truth. I was merely thinking about what his motive could be, since you seem to wish to think about it." Anthy stated as she took a bite of a piece of her toast on her plate.

"Yeah, I was just trying to make sense of it Anthy… but that doesn't mean that you have to think about it. You can sit here and enjoy breakfast, read one of your magazines. I don't want you stressing out about this too. After all, it is my duel. He did challenge me." I rubbed the back of my head, saying kindly. Man, she was really extreme wasn't she? You say one thing and she does the thing, but to its most extreme extent. I could feel a sweat drop forming if this conversation continued.

"If you wish me to stop, then I'll stop. It is awfully kind of you to consider my well-being Miss Utena, but really, I was only trying to help." She spoke calmly. And she was back to being cryptic. You'd think knowing her for a few months would at least help you out when she says these weird things, but no, it doesn't.

"Okay then." Was the only thing I could come up with.

But then I thought: _What if Anthy's right? What if Touga is dueling me to have possession of me… well wait, you can't possess another human being so does that mean he's after my hand…? That must be it! He's always hovering around me, and kissing my hand, I bet he's after dating me. That jerk. He's just the same as Saionji sometimes, I swear. Well, no matter, I'll try my best to win so that I won't become his. Because if I lose, it's all over…_

I looked a little worried as I munched on a piece of my toast and stared at the table. Anthy smiled and said softly…

"Don't worry Miss Utena, I wish you luck." She said. "You'll do great, I know you will." Anthy was giving me a vote of confidence. Which I suppose I was thankful for, but still, even this for her seemed a bit out of her character. Could it have been that since she and I had been spending so much time around one another for so long she was finally beginning to come out of her shell a bit? Could it be she was finally showing me what she was like on the inside beside the pleasant guard she put up for herself?

Well, maybe I could try this now that it had been a while of being together…

"Thanks." There was another pause before I rubbed my arm awkwardly and started. "Hey… Anthy." I said. She answered me just as slowly, the only sound in the room was Chu-Chu munching on his cookies loudly.

"Yes, Miss Utena?" She answered.

"We've been together for quite a while now…" I trailed and she picked up on my thought.

"Yes, that's right, we have, Miss Utena." She nodded, confirming that.

"So I was wondering if I could ask you a question." I continued and slowly looked up to meet her gaze. Her eyes were just as empty as they always were and she took a pause, as usual, before she answered me. Though her green eyes were gleaming in the sunlight coming through the window, they never shined in the manner that anyone else's I've seen would. Why? I stared at them for a moment before her expression changed and she said, softly:

"Why of course. You can ask me anything, Miss." She said.

"Okay. If you say so." I started and she could see I was uneasy. Still, she remained unmoving and I just found it within myself to continue. "Well, some people have told me that you don't have a will of your own. I never brought it up because I didn't know how to tell you and I didn't want to hurt your feelings. But, I guess what I'm asking is…" I tried to phrase it right, the way I wanted to phrase it. I couldn't believe I was actually having this conversation with her right now, especially when I was the one who believed she had to be a regular, normal teenage girl like me.

"If they're right?" She completed the question for me. I looked at her, my eyes had gleams of surprise and shock in them all the same. They were moving a little in a bit of a panic; I'd hate to think that I just upset her or ruined what we have over a simple question like that. Then again, I could see how it might hurt her feelings. But Anthy wasn't the type to show her feelings to anyone, really, not even me, right? So then…

"No, well. I guess what I am asking is if things bother you. You know? Doesn't when someone destroys flowers make you angry? Or when someone says things about you make you hurt or sad? They're always telling me how you don't have a will of your own and you listen to the person you're attached to or living with, but I always think they're wrong. I tell them they have to be wrong. I mean, what a thing to say about someone who is a human being. I mean, I believe you have feelings and thoughts and a will of your own. You have to. You're a human being Anthy and you don't belong to me. The only person you belong to is yourself." I crossed my arms, she had to hear me and know that. She had to know what I felt.

I don't know why I was taking such a stance on this matter, as if it bothered me so passionately when it never had before, but I suppose now it was bothering me just that much. Anthy had become closer to my heart no doubt, she was my friend, so that's why I was so willing to protect her. She looked at me for a moment, and for a minute there I thought I saw surprise in her eyes, but within the next minute they changed back to how they usually looked and she sighed and said…

"If you say so, Miss Utena." She totally didn't address anything I just said. "People will say what people say, we do an awful lot of talking, don't we?" She said so causally as if this was some sort of joke. I stood up a little flustered.

"Yeah but Anthy!" My hands were drawn into my chest in little fists and my arms were at my torso to my form. She watched me do this. "Don't you care about what they're saying about you? I mean, you have to care about it. It's not right. I'll always stand up for you, but sometimes you need to stand up for yourself. After all, you have a will of your own. You're just a regular girl like me, I know that behind that face you put on there has to be a will there. There has to be feelings there, I know things make you unhappy or upset. I know things make you angry. I just know it." I stood there for a minute and she looked at me for another minute. Several beats of time had passed before she took a sip of her tea and Chu-Chu fell onto the table, having finished all his cookies. She gently reached down to rub his stomach with one of her fingers and he relaxed.

For a moment she didn't say anything, but then she said:

"A regular girl, just like you." I supposed I was hearing her thoughts out loud. But it wasn't an answer still. So I sighed and sat back down to finish eating my breakfast before I had to really get ready to go in a few hours. And after another moment of silence between I said:

"I care about you Anthy. You make me happy, than anyone has ever made me." I told her what I thought was true. "You're my best friend, so yes you're a person who I would love to continue to get to know." I took another bite of another piece of toast on my plate, although cold now. I chewed and she looked up at me, saying slowly:

"Friend?" She said it like a question. "We're best friends?" She said again.

I nodded.

"I see." She said cryptically. "Thank you Miss Utena." And just as I was about to ask for what, she continued: "For being my friend." She smiled, a full smile for once.

 _Anthy…_

I thought and slowly a smile formed on my face as well. My heart may have skipped a beat in that moment watching her smile like that. I couldn't explain but I knew I wanted to keep her around here, having tea and breakfast with her forever. As long as we attended Ohtori Academy, we weren't ever going to be apart. I wanted to protect her, just like I wanted to protect my dreams of being a prince.

—

 **A few hours later, noon at the Dueling Arena…**

I showed up to the dueling arena with Anthy by my side and it seemed as I entered Touga was already standing there waiting for me. The wind blew dramatically through his hair and mine as I slowly approached the center of the arena in which we were to be fighting. He had a sheathed sword in his hands, and I had Saionji's with me as well.

He smirked as I stopped walking standing a few feet apart from him in the center of the place. And like before, there was that same weird trick of the light again. As I had stopped walking it fell onto us, the dark sky, the stars and the moon above head. I looked up and then back down quickly as to not become distracted by it. Anthy didn't seem fazed.

"So you've come." He said a moment later.

"You challenged me, and said it was necessary. How could I not?" I spoke next. "What is it you want Touga? This doesn't make any sense." I decided to ask him straight out.

"There is something you have that I want, and I know I must duel you for it." He smirked. I saw it though he was trying to keep it down. "We will wager something on this duel just like the last time. What is your wager?" He asked me straight out. The wind continued.

I took down the bag off my shoulder and placed it on the ground. Slowly I stood back up.

"I wager my sword I won off Saionji." I stated bravely to him, never breaking eye contact. Anthy looked at me, surprised, seemingly more surprised than she'd ever been, even though she was standing behind me, and I couldn't see her.

"Quite a bold wager, Utena." He commended me. I wondered what he was going to wager. "I wager my Student Council President title, against your sword. I think that's a fair wager." He stated bravely as well.

"You what?" I was surprised. "You wager your Student Council tile on this battle? Touga, you've always been on the council, that position means everything to you." I made that apparent to him. He closed his eyes for a moment and then reopened them a moment later.

"That's just how serious I am Utena. I'm willing to risk my title on this duel to get what I want." He said next. I couldn't explain why but I felt sad, somewhat, after he said that.

"Well I suppose if you're that serious." I looked off to the side.

"I'll be a good sport and allow you to fight with the sword you wagered. I mean is Saionji can do it, then so can you. And if I don't you'd be defenseless. And despite what this duel may say about me, I really don't want to hurt you Utena." He was telling the truth, but at this moment I didn't know if I could trust he was sincere.

"How kind of you." I remarked, sort of, sarcastically.

"That's just the kind of guy I am." He boasted.

"Enough talk. Let's duel." I said. I just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. I didn't like the idea that I had to fight Touga and more than that I didn't like the idea of waging Saionij's weapon that I'd won off him. It might have come in handy, but, the way I look at it is this: The lamp was a souvenir brought back to me from India and it was a special item that Wakaba wouldn't want me to lose or give away. I had nothing else to my name when I fought Saionji that first time but the lamp, but thankfully I won. At least if I lost the sword, I would still have my lamp which seemed to mean everything to Wakaba, and it meant a lot to me too. I couldn't explain why either but I feel like the lamp needed to be kept safe, just like Anthy. So much so that it reminded me of her, and I wasn't trying to lose Anthy.

He smirked. And with that smirk and the blowing of the wind, so too did the roses appear in our pockets once more and the bells ring signifying the start of the duel. As soon as those bells rang, Touga didn't hang back. He came at me fast and strong. Not that I expected he would hold back at all, but, I wasn't expecting him to be this skilled and so fast either. I always pictured Touga as the intelligent but flirtatious type that only does sword fighting in his spare time, not to be as good as Saionji! But then, I guess things always will surprise you about people, especially at Ohtori Academy.

I was dodging his strikes as they were coming, turning in every position to protect my rose from being cut from my chest. Those were the rules after all, and if I could only manage to get inside his strikes his rose would be mine. But, it was clear now that that wasn't going to be so easy. I know I said I'd win, but I wasn't so sure anymore with the way he was performing.

It went on like this for several minutes. He dashed and jabbed and swiped at me, and I dodged and blocked and parried everything he was throwing onto me. He simply wasn't letting up and I could tell why anyone would have a hard time going up against Touga now. He didn't break his concentration one bit, and for someone who usually loves to talk and say all kinds of things, he was being quiet for once. That's how I knew this battle just got even more serious than it was just before. I couldn't lose.

I started to jump back and dash and jab at him, going on the offensive. He blocked and parried, taking steps back finding it impressive that I had managed to turn the tide and switch up the pace with just some mere footwork. Now he was speaking to me.

"Impressive Utena. I didn't take you to be this skilled with swords. Then again, you beat Saionji, so I suppose you're performing just as expected." He said. I was so concentrated, I didn't let that faze me, and as a result I said nothing. I just continued to come at him, and he continued to do what he needed to do in order to make this into a real challenge for me. He switched it up again and once more he was on the offense. He took a hard jab that would have hit me had I not flipped back in the air to dodge. He missed and watched as I did this, waiting for me to land on my feet. From there, I pushed forward and dashed at him as quick as I could, but as I came into his close quarters, he simply stood still with his sword down as if he were going to drop it. He opened his arms, which threw me off. I wasn't expecting him to do that!

Had he just given up?

Altogether I had stopped my running and started a slow walk towards him, a little surprised why he would do such a thing. And I had come so close to him with my sword raised at him. If he wasn't going to continue in the sword fight, then what was the point of striking his rose? There was no point to this match in my eyes to begin with, so what would be the point of slashing his rose? He was my friend and to raise a blade against a friend isn't something I would do, I didn't want to do it. Anthy seemed surprised, watching behind me with an expression that only Touga could see at the moment. Though her mouth was closed and the rest of her was unmoving, her eyes contained a little bit of water and were a little wider than usual. She… was worried about me.

Nonetheless I stopped right before him, within his arms. He waited a moment before he wielded his sword and cut the rose from my chest with one stroke. The petals blew in the wind, and the bells rang signifying the end of the duel. He hugged me close and played with a few strands of my hair between his fingers as he said softly:

"Thank you, you've put up a great fight, Utena. But it appears this time I've won." He spoke almost as if it were an intimate conversation no one else was supposed to hear. I would normally have pushed him off me if he were ever this close, but I found I couldn't move, I was frozen. I felt something run through me, something I couldn't describe. Because if I knew Touga, his intentions were never his true ones and I feared what those might actually be.

He let go of me, and I let go of the sword on the ground. He took a few steps back and sheathed his back into its holder and held it in his one hand down by his side. He watched me, frozen and closed his eyes to steady himself before he spoke.

"Utena, I don't want the sword." He said softly. "You can keep it, if you like. I know you're going to need it to defend yourself should anything else happen. And I have every faith that it will, being that you are a duelist." He stated, I just listened. "You wear that ring, that is the real reason I challenged you. In addition you have something I want, but that something I want will not come as easily to me as I would like." He continued, I looked at him slowly, wondering what it was he was talking about.

"What are you saying, Touga?" I managed out of my mouth.

He sighed and said: "Originally, I asked you to come up here to battle me simply because you are a duelist and I figured if I won I could win back the sword you won off Saionji, since he hasn't been the same man since he lost to you in battle. But that wasn't the only reason. I thought we could wager much on this battle that needed to happen. Utena, I want you to be my girlfriend." He stated solemnly. I was able to turn to face him and make eye contact now. What the heck did he just say?

"You what?" I said slowly.

"Well you see… I knew you'd wager your sword on this battle to protect your friend there, and your friend's gift, the lamp. Even if it left you defenseless, you wouldn't care so long as you had your lamp and your best friend to keep you company. But, I don't want the sword, and I have won this battle, so I get to keep my title as Student Council President as well. No Utena, what I want from you, is your word that you will go out with me. This was one roundabout way of thinking I could make you be with me, if I won a battle against since if I asked you'd never intentionally say yes. I still want that, but as I'm beginning to realize, what I pulled here today, it's not going to make that happen. You can't force a beautiful girl such as yourself to be with someone like me, even if I am the most sought after person on campus but all kinds of girls." He thought out loud. I wished he would just get to the point.

"So what is it you want Touga? A date? You want me to be your girlfriend? You want another duel? Just tell me." I said, perhaps a little more desperately than I intended.

"Remember what I told you about the lamp?" He phrased first. "That - all of that I truly believe. I do believe wholeheartedly that it has magical powers. That being said, that's what I want from you, Utena. I want to possess the magic lamp and see what powers it possesses. And even though it was a thoughtful gift from your friend, you don't appreciate what it could do for you as you will never use it. You didn't believe me when we had that conversation and I can see in your eyes you still don't believe it. So, it's your decision to make. You can hand yourself over, and keep the lamp and sword, or you can retain your freedom and give me the lamp in exchange for it." He was giving me an ultimatum, never did I think I'd ever be in this position in my life. He laid it out plain for me, what was I to do?

I thought about it a minute as the winds continued to blow. It was silent besides those gusts and I felt I could hear my heartbeat like drum beats in my ears. They were pounding, as I thought. I knew Touga would be as patient as he could be for this decision. I just was trying to come to terms with the fact that the decision I was thinking of making would inevitably make me feel more disconnected to Anthy than I have ever been.

But, Wakaba would want me to tell this creep off and retain my freedom. She would say 'what are you kidding? Give away that silly thing, you're my true love Utena!' Or something like that. Wakaba cares too much about me, and I care too much about her. But I suppose I couldn't do anything about the lamp in the future if I was always under his arm as his girlfriend and to be honest the very thought of it disgusted me, even if Touga was somewhat of a nice guy too. I sighed and looked at him with tears welling in my eyes. It seemed silly to get all messed up about a silly item brought back from India, but I felt like that silly item held a key point in mine and Anthy's friendship with one another, and if that were to be taken away, so too would she be.

"Alright… it's yours." I said softly.

"Come again? What was that beautiful?" He said as he placed his hand up by his ear. He didn't hear me.

"I said the lamp… it's yours. You can have it." I looked down with a shadow casting over my eyes from the bangs of my hair. I didn't like this one bit, but it's what I had to do. I couldn't believe I lost to Touga like that. Especially when I said I'd do anything I had to to win.

"Why thank you, Utena. That's very generous of you." He started to walk over to get it, when I stopped him and he stopped in his tracks. I placed a hand to his chest keeping him at bay from me, and with the same shadow over my eyes, I said:

"I'll get it. I want to say goodbye to it." He nodded and waited there for me. I walked over and picked it up in my hands, cradling it softly. Anthy looked at me, worriedly. I suppose she didn't understand.

"Miss Utena?" She asked.

I didn't say anything to her, except this: "Oh Anthy… I just wish there was some way I could have protected this, what this is between us, protected you. I just wish I had the power to change things. But I don't." I sighed and turned and walked it over to Touga placing it softly into his hands. He smiled and started to walk out of the arena.

"Thank you, I will cherish it dearly. Come on Anthy, I think we need to give Utena a moment alone." Anthy nodded and walked with him outside the arena, leaving me alone to feel whatever I was feeling or thinking. But the only thing on my mind was; how could I have lost like that? How could I have lost the symbol of my friendship with Anthy, especially after making her think that I think what everyone says is true. She probably doesn't believe me that I think she has a will, she probably only heard the 'don't have a will part', and now there is nothing I can do to make her see that. I can't rub the lamp and wish for her to see that, I can't do all those things I wanted to do with it, I can't because I've lost.

And that's that.

—

 **Later on that night in the dorm…**

The place felt more empty than usual. Anthy didn't come home tonight which only helped to prove more to me that she was just as upset as I was that I lost. Or that I hurt her feelings indefinitely somehow, something I don't think I ever apologized for, and therefore made her hate me somehow. Or in the very least she must be angry with me.

Chu-Chu was sleeping in the corner of the room, sulking in that dark corner as Anthy hadn't come back with me tonight. I laid out some food for him but he didn't eat it, he hadn't eaten much of anything all day and besides breakfast, I knew how he felt. I didn't feel like eating when I came home to my dorm, I didn't feel like doing anything. I just felt empty, I felt like lying here waiting for Anthy to come through the door with dinner or some new tea brand she wished to try.

I was expecting every time I closed my eyes to hear her voice speaking to me softly, or to be laughing at some silly thing Chu-Chu was doing right in front of her on the table. Or making remarks to me about how I should be taking better care of myself and the likes. But she wasn't here and all I could do was stare up at the top bunk's bottom, thinking she might still be up there. Knowing that she won't, and glancing at my ring, wondering if this ring was doing me good at all or just causing me more trouble.

They said they challenged me because I was a duelist, because I wear this ring. It meant that I would be led back to the prince again, which is why I wear it and treasure it so much. But all it's done since I've come to this school is cause more trouble for me and others than good. I sighed and dropped my hand back down onto the mattress beneath me, it made a plop sound as it hit the bed and I rolled over slowly onto my side facing the wall. I held my hands together and slowly closed my eyes, feeling sleep starting to take me.

' _Anthy… I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I'm sorry I lost today and you had to see that, just when you were starting to believe in me, and us… I let you down. I lost the symbol of our friendship, the thing that we bonded over to begin with. The thing that most of our conversations had been about. The talk of our dreams, I've lost the ability to make them come true now. I've lost the ability to set you free, whatever that means…and I've lost you, it feels like…'_

I thought as all I could see now was darkness inside my closed eyes. I continued a moment later with a heavy sigh.

' _Anthy… please return soon…'_

That was my last thought as I felt I couldn't remain conscious anymore.

 **[End of Chapter 5].**


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